Sora Brittany Armstrong's adventures as she answers the call to serve in the Romania/Moldova Mission.

Monday, May 25, 2015

Miracles

Wow, this week literally blew my mind. My peoples Heavenly Father has a
plan, sometimes that plan is not our plan but that plan is always the
best way! So let me just tell you about my week.

This
week we had so AWESOME lessons. The first were with Mercy, she has come
so far. She is reading everyday and her testimony is so much farther
along then it was a month ago. We had a lesson on temples with her. She
has had quite a few close family members die and as we taught about
ordinances for the dead the coolest spirit settled on us. It was so
tender so full of love and Mercy could feel it. She committed to a
baptism date of June 6! We are so excited for her, we went back later on
last week and she had invited a friend to sit in on the lesson. She is
truly converted now. Heavenly Father has definitely taught me a lesson
of patience with Mercy, patience and trust in him. Last time I thought
Mercy was ready but Heavenly Father knew she wasn't now I realize that
she is so much more prepared to make these covenants. I am grateful for
that heartbreak now my joy is so much fuller and I have gained so much
more trust in my Father in Heaven. I really think she is going to do it!Now
the story of Alexandru. He is so ready, we really didn't even do
anything. He is the son of an incredible member. I would love to tell
this whole story it is truly incredible but I will try to give a
synopsis. Georgetta, Alex's mom, is one of the most faithful members in
Romania. She does her visiting teaching, she comes to church every
single week even if it means not eating on Saturday so she can pay to
come into the city from the town where she lives. She has been to the
temple many times and the last time she was there she prayed so hard for
Alex. Alex was going through a rough time he had fallen into some major
addictions and because of those addictions he lost everything about two
months ago. The first time we met with him we told him about Self
Reliance and he met with the Strattons a senior couple and then had a
lesson with Elders Brundage and Nango while in Buch. Then he came back
to Constanta looking to take himself out of the destructive situation he
was in. Since then he has stopped smoking and drinking coffee even
before we taught him the Word of Wisdom, he has committed to living the
commandments and he has even asked to speak on Sunday. He set a
baptismal date for himself on Thursday and that is what we are moving
towards. Alexandru will change the church here in Romania, he is a
powerful human being, when he speaks people listen. He already has asked
how he can be a good example to his friends and if he can invite them
to his baptism. He used to work for a major news station in Buch and had
his own show. This man is a builder.Miracles
are occurring because of the faith of the members here in Constanta.
They are not content with the church in Romania they have a strong
desire to build it. So many of our members are so obedient. They are
constantly looking to share the gospel and God is rewarding their
efforts. I am so humbled to be here at this time to see these miracles. I
know that it is the sacrifice of these members and the will of God that
is causing the church to grow here. I also know that it is not because
of me that these things are happening. These people would not just take
the word of two 19 year old's, the spirit has testified of the truth of
these things into the hearts of Mercy and Alexandru and it has been a
beautiful thing to watch!

Another
cool experience of this week. As we were walking home the other night
we saw a lady that lives in our block struggling to walk home. We
offered her our arms and she grabbed onto me and Sora Mits. She has
Parkinson's disease pretty bad, she was shaking so so bad at one point I
was sure I was going to have carry her home. As we walked we just
talked, every step caused her pain. It was such a humbling experience. I
just felt this sadness and pain for this woman. As we got into the
apartment that night the mood was pretty somber. As sora Mits and I
talked about it we talked about Christ must feel. He literally felt our
pains and sufferings and that sorrow we were feeling was probably just a
fraction of what he feels for that woman. I am so grateful for that
experience. I am grateful that I was allowed to feel that but sorrow for
that woman. It wasn't a feeling a pity I just was so sad that someone
had to deal with that. Can you imagine not being able to walk home?
Christ KNOWS, he knows us, he knows how we feel, he hurts for us, he
weeps at our pain. You are never alone!

Things are HAPPENING here in Romania! Thank you for all your prayers and your love! The church is true.